Rail lubricator



June 10, 1941.. A. F. HUBER EIAL 2,244,701

RAIL LUBRICATOR Filed Feb. 27, 1959 2 Sheets-Sheet 1 Willi/11111 VIII/WMINVE%TOE y MW M ATTORNEY Patented June 10, 1941 RAIL LUBRICATOR AlbertF. Huber and John V. Houston, Chicago, Ill., assignors to The AmericanBrake Shoe and Foundry Company, New York, N. Y., a corporation ofDelaware Application February 27, 1939, Serial No. 258,657

8 Claims.

The invention relates to railway track equipment and, more particularly,to a lubricating device for lubricating the flanges of passing vehiclewheels.

According to a preferred form of the invention, the lubricator is madeup of a lubricant-applying device attached to the inside of the runningrail and a combined reservoir and feeding device attached to the ends ofthe ties for supplying lubricant to the applying device.

In the preferred form, the applying device comprises essentially adelivery plate clamped to the web of the running rail in spaced relationso as to form a stationary slot under the head of the rail. A ramp barhaving a lubricant-applying recess, and which may also act as a valveplate, is slidably mounted against the delivery plate. A housing memberencloses the ramp bar and supports springs for yieldably holding theramp bar in upper position to be engaged by wheel flanges.

The combined reservoir and feeding device, in its preferred form,comprises a comparatively large cylinder or pot with a weighted pistonon top of the lubricant. Springs are provided for supporting the potfrom the ends of adjacent railway ties in overhanging relation. A leverfulcrumed between the railway ties has one end bearing against theunderside of the running rail and the other end applied to thesupporting springs in such manner that the vertical movement of the railcaused by passing vehicles will agitate the lubricant cylinder, causinglubricant to flow into the applying device.

The invention also consists in certain new and original features ofconstruction and combination of parts hereinafter set forth and claimed.

Although the novel features which are believed to be characteristic ofthis invention will be particularly pointed out in the claims appendedhereto, the invention itself, as to its objects and advantages, and themanner in which it may be carried out, maybe better understood byreferring to the following description taken in connection with theaccompanying drawings forming a part thereof, in which Fig. 1 is a planview of the lubricating device, with parts broken away;

Fig. 2 is a section on the line 2-2 of Fig. 1;

Fig. 3 is a side elevation, with parts broken away, taken on the line 33of Fig. 2;

Fig. 4 is a section on the line 44 of Fig. 1;

Fig. 5 is a transverse section taken on the line 5-5 of Fig. 3, butshowing the ramp plate depressed by a Wheel;

Fig. 6 is a transverse section taken on the line 6-6 of Fig. 3; and

Fig. 7 is a section showing a modification corresponding to Fig. 5, butwith the ramp plate in upper position.

In the following description and in the claims, various details will beidentified by specific names for convenience, but they are intended tobe as generic in their application as the art will permit.

Like reference characters denote like parts in the several figures ofthe drawings.

In the drawings accompanying and forming partof this specification,certain specific disclosure of the invention is made for purposes ofexplanation, but it will be understood that the details may be modifiedin various respects without departure from the broad aspect of theinvention.

Referring now to the drawings and, more particularly, to Figs. 1 and 2,the running rail denoted by [0 is supported on the usual tie plates 9,resting on the usual wooden railway ties II and is held down in anyconventional way, as by spikes 8. The lubricant-applying device isdenoted by I2 and is applied to the inside or gauge side of the runningrail ID. The reservoir is denoted by I3 and supplies lubricant toapplying device l2 through flexible connecting pipe l4.

Referring now to Figs. 3-6, the lubricant applying device l2 comprises adelivery plate l5 mashined to fit the-base flange I6 of the running raill0 and spaced from the web I! and head I8 of the running rail ID by aU-shaped gasket 19 (Fig. 4) and spacers or shims 20. The gasket H! hasbent projections 22 and the spacers have bent flanges 2| extending upunder the head l8 of the running rail, as shown more particularly inFigs. 4 and 6.

The U-shaped gasket 19 forms a lubricant chamber 23 with a dischargepassage or port 24 under the head l8. The delivery plate l5 has anintegral rib 26 tapered vertically as shown in Fig. 4 and horizontallyas shown in Fig. l to evenly distribute the lubricant through the lengthof delivery slot 24. The lubricant is supplied through supply nipple 21threaded into delivery plate l5 under the middle of equalizing rib 25.The supply nipple 21 is provided with an elbow 28 connected through asuitable coupling to the flexible feed pipe l4 (Figs. 1 and 2). v

The valve plate 30 has sloping end surfaces 3! and 32 (Fig. 3) and aflat intermediate surface 33. It has an open top longitudinal recess 34coextensive with the delivery slot 24 and has a smooth faced side flange35 engaging the smooth surface of delivery plate l and the lower edge ofthe rail head it which is substantially flush with the delivery platel5.

The valve plate 39 is provided with depending flanges forming recessesfor helical springs 31 resting about positioning lugs 38 on platforms 39secured to housing plate 32. The platforms 39 also rest on the baseflange IS, as shown especially in Figs. 5 and 6. The valve plate 36 hasguide lugs 43 slldabl mounted in grooved ways M in the delivery plate I5(Figs. 3 and 6). The helical springs 37 yieldably urge the valve plate3% upwardly, the upward movement being limited by the engagement oflugs'tfi' against the rail head it.

The housing 42 is of box-like construction, having end ears 45 throughwhich pass bolts 45. The bolts it also pass through spacers 20, deliveryplate i5 and web H to tightly clamp the entire lubricant applyingassembly to the running rail.

The housing plate 42 is provided with a longitudinal groove seating anelongate leaf spring il. bent away from the rail at its ends and at themiddle, thereby providing intermediate portions pressing against theflanges 35 of the valve plate 3d and holding this plate snugly againstthe delivery plate l5 and in sliding relation thereto.

Referring now to the supply reservoir 63, this comprises a relativelylarge cylinder 5! having a detachable cover 52 held in position bydetachable fastenings 53, A weighted piston 54 is fitted into thecylinder resting on lubricant 55. The piston ssis provided with a handle5'! and anopening having a. screw threaded removable plug 58 tofacilitate removal of, the piston 54 for replenishing lubricant. Ahelical spring 55 may be positioned in a central recess in the top ofpiston 54, acting between the cover 52 and piston 54'- to urge thelatter downwardly.

The bottom of the cylinder Si is provided with a fitting 59 connected toavalve 653, which in turn is connected to the flexible hose id. The athe underside of base flange i6 and a bent end 12 engaging the undersideof the bar 81.

The lubricant feeding arrangement operates as follows: It is wellrecognized that both running rails and ties yield with a wave-likemotion as the vehicle progresses along the track,

out in most cases there is more relative movement between the runningrails and the railway ties than between the latter and the road bed.

It is the relative movement between the running.

valve 60 is for the purpose of making adjustments to meet varyingconditions, such as the amount of agitation, the type cf lubricant,temperature, the condition of the road bed, etc.

The operation of the lubricant applying device is as follows: Thereservoir i3 and agitation system keeps the lubricant in chamber 23under pressure. Normally, with no trafflc, the valve plate 30 is inupper position, as shown in Fig. 6 and by the dotted lines A in Fig. 5,thus effectively sealing the discharge slot 2 1. As a vehicleapproaches, the flanges 76 of the wheels engage the ramp surfaces 3! or32 of the valve plate 3i] according to the direction of travel of thevehicle, moving the valve plate downwardly against the springs 37,thereby bringing the applying slot 34 and delivery slot 24 insubstantial alignment, as shown in Fig. 5. A limited amount of lubricantflows into applying slot 34 which is carried upwardly by the valve plate3i! as the wheel flange 15 leaves the valve plate 36,.the lubricantbeing applied to the gauge surface of the rail head where it may bepicked up by the wheel flanges of succeeding wheels.

In case there is suiiicient pressure on the lubricant and it is of theright consistency, sufficient lubricant may flow into the applying slot34 when the valve plate 39' is in its lower position indicated in Fig. 5to cause an excess of lubricant to flow out of applying slot 34 to applylubricant directly to the outer surface of the wheel flange, as will beapparent from Fig. 5.

Each time a wheel leaves the valve plate 30, the latter rises and closesdelivery slot 24, and each time awheel flange approaches the valve plate36, the above-recited sequence of events is repeated, thus making theamount of lubricant applied proportional to the number of Wheels passingover the lubricator. The agitation of the reservoir I3 is alsoproportional to the number of wheels passing over the lubricator.

Thus, the above described lubricator applies lubricant to both the gaugesurface of the rail head and to the outer face of the wheel flanges. Thelubricant is applied in such way that it is not spattered and cannot geton the Wheel treads 15 to interfere with traction. Different types ofoil or grease may be used, but it is preferable to use a relativelyheavy grease, 'sufficiently heavy so as not to run down off the gaugesurface of the rail, but suificiently light to flow under agitation.

The above lubricator is safe and reliable. The lugs 43 limit the upwardmovement of the valve plate 39, the guides 44 being sufiiciently largeto prevent free vertical movement of the lugs 43 without binding. Thelong leaf spring 41 keeps the valve plate 30, when in upper position,against the face of delivery plate l5 and lower edge of the rail head [9so as to keep delivery port 24 closed. The delivery plate 30 having rampsurfaces 3| and 32 on both ends, the lubricator can handle traffic ineither direction. The slopes of the rampsurfaces 3i and 32 aresufficiently gentle so as to cause relatively slow downward and upwardmovement of the valve plate 33.

The reservoir pumping. mechanism is simple, there being few movingparts. The feed can be easily adjusted by valve 69 and the reservoir iseasily inspected and replenished with lubricant. To replenish, it isonly necessaryto. remove the cover 52 and lift" out the piston 54' byhandle 51. Before removing piston 54 plug; 58 is removed to avoidcreating vacuum in the bottom of cylinder to interfere with the removalof piston 54.

Referring now to Fig. 7, if desired, the applying slot, indicated by I34in this figure, may be made sufficiently deep so that it is incommunication with the delivery slot 24 at all positions of the rampplate 30. Thus, the plate 30 does not act as a valve plate and has nocontrol over the lubricant feed which, in this case, is controlledentirely by the operation of the reservoir 13 and valve 60.

It will be understood that different reservoir and pumping devices maybe used with the lubricant applying device and that different lubricantapplying devices may be used with this reservoir and pumping device.

While certain novel features of the invention have been disclosed andare pointed out in the annexed claims, it will be understood thatvarious omissions, substitutions and changes may be made by thoseskilled in the art without departing from the spirit of the invention.

What is claimed is:

1. In a track lubricator for use with a rail having a head, web andflange, a delivery plate, means spacing said delivery plate from saidweb to form an elongate delivery slot between said head and plate, anapplying bar having inclined ramp surfaces on the ends thereof andhaving an open top elongate applying recess adjoining said head, saiddelivery plate having vertical groove-ways, said applying bar havinglugs in said ways, a housing plate having spring supports, springsoperating between said supports and said bar, means for clamping saidhousing and delivery plates to said rail with said applying bar slidablylocated between said housing and delivery plates.

2. In a track lubricator, a rail having a lubricant-applying deviceassociated therewith, ties supporting said rail, a supply reservoir inthe form of a cylinder, flexible strips attached to and projectingbeyond the ends of adjacent ties, a supporting bar extending betweensaid strips, said cylinder resting on said supporting bar beyond theends of said ties, a weighted piston in said cylinder, a spring betweenthe'upper end of said cylinder and said piston, a flexible conduitconnecting the lower end of said cylinder with said lubricant-applyingdevice, a fulcrum support extending between adjacent ties, an agi-.

tator bar connecting said spring strips, a lever pivoted to said fulcrumsupport having one end under said rail, the other end under saidagitator bar, whereby the wave motion of said rail with respect to saidties agitates said cylinder.

3. In a track lubricator, a rail having a lubricant-applying deviceassociated therewith, ties supporting said rail, a supply reservoir inthe form of a cylinder, a flexible support attached to an adjacent tiesupporting said cylinder, a weighted piston in said cylinder, a conduitconnecting the lower end of said cylinder with said lubricant-applyingdevice, a fulcrum support attached to a tie, a lever pivoted on saidfulcrum support and having one end in operative relation with said rail,the other end in operative relation with said cylinder, whereby the wavemotion of said rail relative to said ties agitates said cylinder. 4. Ina railway lubricator, a T-rail having a head, web and flange, a deliveryplate disposed adjacent said web, spacers between the ends of saiddelivery plate and said web, a U-shaped gasket extending adjacent saidspacers and the bottom of said delivery plate, forming a passage betweensaid delivery plate and said web and an elongate delivery slot undersaid head, an applying bar having oppositely inclined ramp surfaces andhaving an open'top, elongate, lubricant-applying recess in its surfacefacing the side of said rail head and delivery plate, said applying barhaving open sided spring recesses depending therefrom, said deliveryplate having vertical groove-ways at its ends, said applying bar havinglugs in said groove ways, a housing plate having apertured endssurrounding the ends of said applying bar and forming with said deliveryplate a housing for said bar, bolts passing through said apertured ends,said delivery plate, said spacers and the web of the rail, said housingplate having a longitudinal recess, a leaf spring in said recessengaging the adjoining side of said bar, said housing plate havingplatforms with centering projections, and coil springs resting on saidplatforms and disposed in said spring recesses for yieldably holdingsaid bar in the path of wheel flanges.

5. In a railway lubricator, a rail having a head, web and flange, adelivery plate disposed adjacent said web, spacers between the ends ofsaid delivery plate and said web, a gasket adjacent said spacers and thebottom of said delivery plate, forming a passage between said deliveryplate and said web and a delivery slot under said head. an applying barhaving oppositely inclined ramp surfaces and having an open top,lubricantapplying recess in its surface facing the side of said railhead and delivery plate, said applying bar having spring recessesdepending therefrom, said delivery plate having vertical groove-ways,said applying bar having lugs in said grooveways, a housing platesurrounding the ends of said applying bar and forming with said deliveryplate a housing for said bar, said housing plate having a longitudinalrecess, a spring strip in said recess engaging the adjoining side ofsaid bar, said housing plate having supports, and coil springs restingon said supports and in said spring recesses for yieldably holding saidbar in the path of wheel flanges.

6. In a track lubricator for use with a rail having a head, web andflange, a delivery plate providing an elongate delivery slot extendingalong said head, an applying bar having inclined ramp surfaces on theends thereof and having an elongate applying recess adjoining said slot,said delivery plate and said applying bar having cooperating verticalguiding devices, a housing plate spaced from said delivery plate andform- .ing an elongate space having spring supports at the bottom,springs operating between said supports and said bar urging said barupwardly, means for clamping said housing and delivery plates to saidrail with said applying bar vertically slidably located between saidhousing and delivery plates.

7. In a track lubricator for use with a rail having a flange, web andnormal head, a delivery plate, means spacing said delivery plate fromsaid web and head to form a lubricant chamber between said plate and weband a delivery passage between said plate and head, means supplying saidlubricant chamber with lubricant, an applying bar having inclined wheelengaging surfaces on the ends thereof and having an applying recess incommunication with said delivery slot to apply lubricant to the sideface of said normal head, and means for holding said applying bar inoperative position to permit up and-down movement thereof with, respectto said rail upon passage of trains over said rail.

8. In a track lubricator for use with a rail having a flange, W813 and anormal head, a delivery plate, means spacing said delivery plate fromsaid Web and head to form a lubricant chamber between said plate and weband an elongate delivery slot between said plate and head,v meanssupplying said lubricant chamber with lubricant, an applying bar havinginclined wheel engaging surfaces on the ends thereof and

